A Dún Laoghaire Councillor has called for birds of prey to be used to reduce the number of seagulls on the coast of Dublin. 

Fine Gael’s Frank McNamara said the birds have become a local menace and called for urgent action. 

“I thought to myself, why don’t we bring in a hawkery and have birds of prey go on patrol around the town during peak times?” he asked. 

“That way the seagull population would be deterred from being in the town during that time."

On Lunchtime Live, Cllr Frank Fahy said gulls are a “major problem” in Galway as well, describing them as “extremely noisy” during the nesting season. 

He urged people to avoid giving them food if possible. 

“For people living in city centre locations, or even in rural areas where somebody's actually, if neighbours of yours are feeding seagulls, you cannot sleep at night, particularly during the summer, you can't open windows with them,” he said. 

“I'm not sure what the solution is, but I think we as people have to change our habits; they're a wild bird, they're well able to look after themselves.

“They live exclusively in Eyre Square, all hours of the day and night, feeding on takeaway food. 

“A relative of my own was walking up Shop Street one day and was putting a sandwich into their mouth and the seagull came and literally ripped their lip.”

A seagull trying to get into a plastic rubbish bag. Picture by: Mark Walker / Alamy.

Also on the programme, biologist Éanna Ní Lamhna expressed scepticism that gulls are the solution. 

“How do you know the hawks will go for the seagulls?” she said. 

“So, the seagulls, those herring gulls are bigger than the hawks. If I was a hawk, I'd go for something smaller. 

“Then you'd have to send out hawks that actually attack birds; there's only the peregrine falcon and the sparrow hawk that attack birds. 

“The others attack mice and rats and things like that. So, that wouldn't work.”

Main image: A woman and a seagull. Picture by: Alamy.com.